Qing Yao

Chapter 352 You go first, you one.

"Injustice! Injustice! Your Excellency, I have been wronged!"

Wang Qianzong, his neck bound by iron chains and being dragged out, turned pale with fright. He struggled and shouted, "You've got the wrong person! When did I ever seize farmland or allow slaves to commit violence?!"

"Has your judicial office made a mistake?"

Ge Wantai, a garrison commander who was on good terms with Wang Guozhen, stood up to try to stop him, while the other generals of the garrison were also astonished.

The officials from the provincial judicial office ignored him and simply led Wang Guozhen out of the hall.

Seeing this, Wang Guozhen quickly looked at Zhao Jiangong: "Sir, save me! Sir, save me!"

"Bastard!"

Zhao Jiangong was not about to allow his trusted subordinates to be taken away by the provincial judicial commissioner so easily. His face darkened, and he slammed his hand on the table, pointing at the provincial judicial commissioner, and said, "Today, the provincial governor summoned us to discuss important military matters and to receive the imperial edict. Even if Commander Wang is truly at fault, shouldn't the provincial judicial commissioner discuss this again later?"

The magistrate was merely a minor official of the seventh rank, yet he showed no fear of the third-rank military commander. He simply cupped his hands in a respectful but not arrogant manner and said, "My lord, I am acting on the orders of the Provincial Judicial Commissioner to arrest this person. According to the rules of the yamen, once the criminal is apprehended, he should be immediately brought back to the yamen for interrogation. If there is any injustice, the Provincial Judicial Commissioner will make a clear judgment. Take him away!"

After saying that, he ignored Zhao Jiangong and signaled the yamen runners to forcibly drag Wang Guozhen, who was still crying out for justice, out of the house.

This scene silenced the entire hall. The officers of the garrison exchanged bewildered glances, while the accompanying civil officials were also filled with surprise and uncertainty.

Zhao Jiangong's expression was uncertain. Although he was a third-rank military officer, he did not dare to obstruct the judicial office from handling the case, so he could only look at the provincial governor.

Zhao An seemed to come to his senses at this moment, lightly tapped the table and snorted, quite displeased, "Even if the Provincial Judicial Office is handling cases, there should be a time limit. What kind of behavior is this, arresting people like this!"

After speaking, he looked around at the officials in the hall, his tone softening somewhat, "Gentlemen, there is no need to panic. It is the duty of the provincial judge, and he must have solid evidence to arrest people. If Wang Guozhen is innocent, I believe Lord Zhang would not have wronged him. If he is guilty, he should be punished according to the law. Where were we? Right, Li Youji, it is your turn to report on the equipment situation in the camp."

"."

Completely bewildered, Li Youji jolted awake and quickly stood up again. His mind was still a mess, so he could only stammer as he began to report.

However, after the disturbance caused by the officials from the provincial judicial office, the atmosphere at the meeting became somewhat strange, and neither the civil officials nor the military officers were focused on the "point".

Most civil officials thought that the fact that the provincial governor's office dared to openly slap the provincial governor in the face meant that the power struggle among the provincial bigwigs had moved from the shadows to the open, and they had begun to fight without regard for rules or pretense. This made it a big problem for the subordinates to choose sides.

Don't let the gods fight and ordinary people suffer along with them.

The military officers thought that the fact that the provincial governor's office dared to break into the provincial governor's meeting and arrest someone meant that Wang Guozhen must have been caught red-handed. If Wang Guozhen went to the provincial governor's office and said something inappropriate, they would probably be in trouble as well.

After all, no one's hands are completely clean.

The interplay of these two mindsets resulted in the report being conducted in an extremely oppressive and distracted state. Li Youji, who was giving his report, not only stammered but also had very shifty eyes, glancing at Zhao Canjiang from time to time.

Zhao Jiangong remained calm. Wang Guozhen was just a captain under him. Although he was a confidant, he didn't know much about Zhao Jiangong. Even if he couldn't withstand the methods of the provincial judicial office and made up stories, it wouldn't threaten him much.

A vague unease lingered in her heart; she felt something was off about the scene of capturing people just now. She secretly glanced at the governor out of the corner of her eye and found that the governor not only looked normal, but was even listening more attentively than before, occasionally picking up a pen to take notes on the paper in front of him.

Seeing that he had no prior knowledge of the matter, he was now pretending to be calm and suppressing his anger.

This relieved Zhao Jiangong. After Li Youji finished his stammering report, Zhao An nodded, put down his brush, and said, "I have recorded all the issues you just mentioned."

Before he could finish speaking, footsteps sounded again outside the door!

It was the provincial judicial commissioners who came!

However, the leader changed his demeanor. After bowing to Zhao An and apologizing, he precisely locked his gaze on a guard.

"Sun Desheng, the garrison commander of the Right Battalion of the Fu Biao Army, has embezzled military pay and used inferior goods as provisions. The evidence is conclusive! Your Excellency, order his arrest and interrogation!"

The sound of chains rang out again, and yet another officer was dragged away in the deathly silence.

Before Sun Shoubei could even cry out for justice, he was ashen-faced and limp, looking as if his misdeeds had been exposed.

From Zhao An's perspective, the provincial judicial office was simply going too far!

Officials clearly saw the veins bulging on the governor's forehead, but the governor swallowed his anger and did not lash out on the spot. He simply coughed lightly and said, "The problem of insufficient equipment for the governor's garrison, which I just mentioned, is a major problem. If this problem is not resolved, it will not only be a major problem for the governor's garrison, but also a major problem for our entire Anhui province."

His voice betrayed no emotion, displaying an extremely high level of composure.

With two officers from the provincial judicial office being taken away in succession, the remaining officers found the meeting unbearable. No one wanted to stay there, and no one was thinking about the imperial court's rewards anymore.

The scene that followed was the governor speaking while taking notes, while the civil and military officials below listened anxiously. Apart from the governor's voice, the hall was very quiet.

Staff members would occasionally bring teapots to refill the adults' tea, but no one could drink it.

There was nothing they could do; it was as if the officials from the provincial judicial office had made a pact to come every so often.

The reasons given for each visit were never the same: suspected of colluding with bandits to smuggle salt and iron, allowing troops to harass civilians and rob merchants, or falsely reporting troop numbers to embezzle salaries.
Embezzlement, bribery, unauthorized military action, harming the people, and misappropriation of public funds.
Various charges emerged one after another. The ranks of the officers arrested also rose higher and higher, from centurions and garrison commanders to captains and lieutenants!
Every time the chains clanged, it was like a heavy hammer blow to the hearts of the remaining officers. Every time someone from the provincial judicial office entered, the others froze as if their hearts had stopped, fearing they would be next.

It was no longer just the military officers of the governor's garrison who were on tenterhooks; even the civil officials who were there as mere accompaniments silently lowered their heads. Some pretended to drink tea, some pretended to take notes of the governor's speech, and some stared intently at their own toes.

Even the Anqing prefect, who had taken the initiative to pledge allegiance to the provincial governor, was now restless and felt an itch on his scalp.

The officers of the Fubiao Army, who were captured from beginning to end, did not put up any resistance. When the officials from the Judicial Commissioner's Office came in, they followed them out.

More and more chairs were left empty in the hall, and the atmosphere grew increasingly cold and suffocating.

By this time, even the slow-witted Fu Biao and his group realized that this was not a glorious ceremony to receive rewards, but a carefully arranged trap!
Don't say the people in the provincial judicial office were audacious, or that the big shots were tearing each other apart and fighting; it was all a conspiracy against Fu Biao.

The only plausible explanation is that this was all part of the provincial governor's plan. Otherwise, how could the provincial judges have appeared so openly at the meeting? Did they really think the provincial governor's office was deserted?

Zhao Jiangong's back was soaked with cold sweat. He knew that he was probably the real target of the provincial governor, but he had no chance to resist.

His troops were several miles away from the provincial governor's office!
Being in this venue, there was absolutely no one to turn to for help.

Why would someone surnamed Zhao do this?
Zhao Jiangong thought of many things, including the matter of killing innocent people and claiming credit for them. However, this matter was tacitly approved and even encouraged by Lord Zhu Gui. If Zhao were to bring this matter up again, there would only be one purpose: to bring Lord Zhu down!
Driven by fear and rage, Zhao Jiangong could no longer contain himself and abruptly stood up, glaring at Zhao An: "What exactly does Your Excellency intend to do!"

"What is Lieutenant General Zhao doing?"

Zhao An, holding the calligraphy brush, looked puzzled and confused.

Zhao Jiangong snorted coldly: "My lord, don't play dumb with me. Today's banquet is a real trap set by you!"

"Alas, Lieutenant General Zhao has misunderstood me."

Zhao An wanted to explain, but couldn't, because the officials from the provincial judicial commissioner's office arrived again.

This time, it was Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Zhang Chengji himself who entered.

"My lord, I have been handling this case in accordance with the law, and have repeatedly disturbed you. I hope you will forgive me!"

The provincial governor bowed respectfully to the provincial governor, and then with a wave of his hand, several armed constables arrested Zhao Jiangong.

"Zhao Jiangong, during the previous suppression of the White Lotus Rebellion, you ordered your troops to kill thousands of innocent civilians, cut off their heads to claim them as military achievements, and deceived the imperial court. Your crimes are heinous! I am in charge of criminal matters in this province. I will now take you back to the yamen for questioning in accordance with the laws of the imperial court. Guards!"

Zhang Chengji shouted sharply, "Arrest Zhao Jiangong and bring him to justice!"

"Whoo!"

Several burly armed constables immediately rushed forward.

"Unjustly accused!"

When the crisis finally came, Zhao Jiangong jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, shouting hoarsely, "This is a frame-up! It's a false accusation! Those heads were all from cult bandits, and Governor Zhu can testify to this!"

Struggling, he looked at Zhao An, his previous anger completely gone, his eyes filled with pleading, "My lord, you must believe in this humble general, please do justice for me! This humble general is utterly loyal to the court, and utterly loyal to you, my lord."

Seeing Zhao Jiangong's completely different performance, Zhao An showed a look of heartache and disbelief on his face, and then slowly said, "General Zhao, if you are truly wronged, I believe that the Provincial Judge will clear your name. However, the law of the country is above all else, and I cannot break the law. I hope that General Zhao will take the initiative to explain the problem when you arrive at the Provincial Judge's Office."

As Zhao An spoke, the armed constables of the provincial judicial office removed Zhao Jiangong's official hat, tore off his official robes, and tightly locked a cold iron chain around his neck.

At this moment, Zhao Jiangong finally despaired completely. He knew that everything was over. He glared at Zhao An with hatred, then stopped resisting and cursing. He lowered his head and silently followed the people from the provincial judicial office away.

Seeing this, Zhao An slowly stood up, sighed, and gave Zhang Chengji a bitter smile, saying, "Brother Zhang, I was just inquiring about the military affairs of the Fubiao Army, but you have arrested the Fubiao people one after another. How can I, the acting governor, continue?"

Zhang Chengji hurriedly replied, "Your Excellency is wise. The case of Fu Biao is of great importance and cannot be delayed. I had no choice but to do this!"

"That's all."

Zhao An shook his head helplessly and watched Zhang Chengji and his men leave.

Inside the hall, a deathly silence fell.

The remaining officers of the garrison were terrified; their jaws were trembling and their entire bodies were shaking.

One of the captains was slumped in his chair, too weak to even stand up.

The reason these officers were not arrested was either because they did not participate in killing innocent people to claim credit, or because their crimes were less serious.

Looking around the meeting room, which was a third empty, Zhao An sighed and sat down again: "Now let's discuss the province's investment promotion. Um, Anqing Prefecture, you go first."

(End of this chapter)